Ch.12
“My answer is no.”
I froze, my hoof just about to open the door to Harshwhinny’s office. I turned to Coloratura, and raised an eyebrow.
“Did we come at a bad time?”
She just shrugged a shoulder. Just then a voice that sounded suspiciously similar to Hercule Satan boomed through the closed hardwood door.
“WHAT DO YOU MEAN, NO?!? IRON WILL DOES NOT TAKE NO FOR AN ANSWER!”
Ah. This clown.
“I mean what I mean. Your business ventures so far have all failed. You have nothing to offer this agency, so my answer remains no.”
“IRON WILL IS VERY ANGRY!”
“I noticed. Now, if you DON’T mind, I have more important things to attend to than to listen to a blue-furred oaf with less brains than the average minotaur, so perhaps you could leave.”
The door slammed open in front of me, revealing a livid Iron Will, who had to duck below the doorframe to exit the office behind him. He turned, and pointed a thick finger toward Harshwhinny, who sat behind her desk with a wall of windows behind her.
“YOU HAVE NOT HEARD THE LAST OF IRON WILL!”
The brown mare with a yellow mane and trophy cup for a cutie mark raised an eyebrow.
“Out. Now.”
Looks like she needs to be the one giving assertiveness lessons.
The bulky minotaur stepped by me, and I couldn’t resist raising a hoof in a half-wave. “Hi Iron Will. Seen Fluttershy lately?”
“Iron Will does not know you.”
I chuckled as the humanoid figure stomped down the hall. Coloratura gave me a curious look.
“What?”
The mare coughed. “I’m not even going to ask.”
I turned back to the door, which had been left open during Iron Will’s hasty departure, and tentatively knocked on the doorframe.
“Enter.” I carefully stepped over the threshold, hearing my hooves make a ‘clop’ noise on the hardwood floor. “Close the door behind you, please.”
I did as she asked as Harshwhinny flipped through a few papers, and I made my way over to the front of her desk. I opened my mouth to introduce myself, but the mare raised a hoof to silence me. Awkwardly, I shut my mouth, and waited for her to finish whatever it was she’d been working on. I used the time to take in the ambience of the office. Hardwood floors, and completely bare except for the desk. It was very Tony Stark-ish.
After what felt like an eternity, the ill-tempered Harshwhinny looked up, and appraised me silently. Her eyes narrowed, and I gulped down the nervous lump that had formed in my throat. A vague feeling of nausea grew in the pit of my stomach.
She’s a lot more intimidating in real life compared to onscreen. I recalled my amusement at how eager Rainbow Dash had been to appease this mare. Now I understood why.
“Name?”
I stammered, but managed to get out; “Um, Motodrop... Motodrop Hillberry.”
“A mouthful.”
I nodded my agreement. "Yes Ma'am."
The mare scratched a few notes with a quill held in her mouth. “Coloratura says you can sing. Can you dance?
I hesitated. I’d never been all that good in interviews. “I’ve never had any training in it, but I’m willing to learn.”
“That would be a no, then.” Harshwhinny scratched a few more notes, and then glared at me like Granny Smith glares at a rotten apple. “Frankly, if it weren’t for Coloratura vouching for you, I would never even consider you, Motodrop. According to my files, you have no history in the music industry, you have no job, you don’t have a citizenship in Equestria...” She flipped through a few more pages. “...You don’t even have any family relations listed, and yet Coloratura says you’ve lived in Equestria for months with your family. I find that to be very suspicious.” She dropped the papers back on her desk, and raised an eyebrow. “Explain yourself. If I find that you’ve been decieving one of my top three earners, I will not hesitate to protect her from you.”
This is not going how I expected. Dang, she really has me in a corner here. I groaned, and closed my eyes in exasperation. On one hand, I could reveal everything and risk the chance that she might not believe me, in which case I would have to get the princesses involved to validate my story which would be both annoying and time-consuming; on the other hand, I could keep certain parts of the story a secret, which would fast track my application, but if I was ever found out, then bye-bye career.
Shoot.
“Well?” Harshwhinny glared at me expectantly.
Applejack would be proud of me “I... ugh... Fine. You win. You want the truth? I’ll tell you everything. I guess there’s no point in hiding it even if you might not believe me.” The brown mare tilted her head, but gestured for me to continue. “You probably already know that I wasn't born in Equestria. The reason there’s no records of my family is because up until a few months ago, we technically didn’t exist on this planet.”
“...What...”
“I was born in Canada. On planet Earth.”
“So you're aliens, then."
“Interdimensional beings, in point of fact.”
“... You’re seriously trying to tell me that you and your family are aliens?”
I sighed. “No. I’m saying that we come from an entirely different plane of existence, and that we came here by accident through a portal that Twilight Sparkle and Starswirl the Bearded were experimenting on.”
“...You’re insane.”
“Perhaps, but that has nothing to do with the truth.”
“You really believe what you’re saying.”
I groaned. “Look, if you don’t believe me, just ask any of the Princesses or Coloratura. They can back up my story.”
Just then there was a knock at the door, and the two of us turned toward the interruption as a mare in a business suit stepped into the room.
“My apologies, but I have an urgent letter for Harshwhinny from Princess Celestia. I was told to deliver it to you as soon as possible.”
Harshwhinny frowned, but stood up from her desk, giving me a wide berth as she trotted over to the businesspony to take the message. I watched in silence as Harshwhinny opened the envelope, her eyes scanning the message before they widened. She looked up at me, and then back down to the message, and then back up to me again. She opened her mouth in disbelief as the door to the office clicked shut behind the businesspony.
“It... It can’t be. That’s impossible!” The letter fell from her hooves as she regarded me with awe. “You were telling the truth... and the Princesses actually corroborated it.”
Wow. Impeccable timing, your majesty. It’s almost like I’m living in a cartoon world... oh wait... “Sooo... does this mean that I’ll be getting the job?”
The brown mare plopped her rump down onto the floor.
“So that green mare from Ponyville was right, after all... Everything we thought we knew... all those conspiracy theories... my goodness...”
I waved a hoof in front of her face, trying to get her to snap out of her trance. “Hellooo... Are you okay?” But it was to no avail. The poor mare looked like she’d seen a ghost, so I trotted to the door, and peeked my head out at a nervous-looking Coloratura. “Hey... um, so your agent kinda just learned that I’m an interdimensional being, and I think she might be broken.”
Coloratura facehooved.
“Of course.”
After we managed to snap Harshwhinny out of her trance, the baffled manager- after seeing the state of my wings- assigned me a stylist to get me prepared for my assignment. Apparently I would be working with Songbird Serenade, and she had some very specific rules about how her background singers were to look. After signing a few papers, Coloratura and I left the room and made our way down the hallway back to the elevator.
“Well... That could have gone better.” I said dejectedly.
“Mmhmm. Why did you tell her about your origins? You could’ve just lied about it.”
I shook my head. “No way. She backed me into a corner, and there’s really no reason to keep it hidden. If I had, she would’ve found out eventually either from you, the princesses, or myself. Better to tell her now and get her used to the idea rather than breaking her trust in me later.”
“Makes sense, I guess. Still, that message from the princess came at exactly the right time.”
“Indeed. Suspiciously so.” I frowned, and pursed my lips in thought. “It makes me wonder if Celestia’s messing with me.”
“That’s PRINCESS Celestia to you, and I highly doubt that she would do something like that. The message’s timing was probably completely coincidental.”
Sorry to burst your bubble, honey, but your benevolent princess isn’t as perfect as you make her out to be. There’s a reason us bronies call her Trollestia. Case in point: the first Grand Galloping Gala the Mane Six attended. I decided to drop it, however, and contented myself to simply walk alongside Coloratura. “So I guess I’m going to be a backup singer for Songbird.”
“You nervous?”
“A little, but if she’s anything like her human version, she’ll be much nicer than most ponies expect.”
“Human version... Earth had a Songbird Serenade?”
I smirked. “Well, to be fair, Songbird is more like the Equestrian version of Sia.”
“Her name was Sia? That’s a bit strange.”
“Says the mare formerly known as ‘Countess Coloratura’”
“Touche.”
The elevator dinged, and the doors opened in front of us. I blinked as a light blue unicorn mare with a dark two-toned red mane stepped out. She scanned the two of us, and dipped her head in respect to Coloratura.
“Good afternoon, miss. I have been requested to tend to Mr. Hillberry’s appearance in preparation for his debut.” She turned to me. “Are you Mr. Hillberry?”
Taken by surprise, I stuttered, but quickly regained my composure. “I... ahem. Yes. I’m Motodrop Hillberry.”
The mare held out a hoof. “I am Rose. I will be your stylist and makeup artist starting today. I have been informed of the state of your wings, and would like to rectify it posthaste.”
I smirked in amusement. Harshwhinny works quickly. I shook the mare’s hoof, and turned to Coloratura. “Meet you at the hotel later?” The singer smiled and nodded before stepping into the elevator.
As the doors closed with a slight ‘whirring’ noise, obscuring Coloratura from view, I turned to Rose. “Are you always this professional?”
The mare breathed out, seeming to release her nerves. “She’s gone.” She turned to me. “That really was her, wasn’t it?”
“What... Coloratura? Yeah, that was her.”
The mare squealed with delight. “I can’t believe I just met Coloratura! The Countess! Oh, I’m so glad I got this job!”
I stared at her, somewhat baffled. “You’re new here?”
“Yes sir. Started yesterday.”
“Oh.” I smiled pleasantly. “Well, I’m new here, too.” I scratched the back of my head. “Look, I’m not much for titles, so I’d prefer if you just call me Moto. If we’re going to be working together, I don’t want you calling me ‘sir’ or anything. It’s a waste of breath.”
Rose blinked once. Twice. Thrice. “Oh. Well in that case, my name is Rose Williams. But you can just call me Rose, or Rosy.”
Rose Williams? That’s an odd name for Equestria. “Nice to meet you, Rose.” The two of us smiled at each other before Rose took a look at my wings. Her pleasant expression turned sour, and she tutted at me.
“Honestly. Have you never cared for your wings? They look like they’ve been through a hurricane. Twice.”
I blushed. “Well... I’ve been cleaning them...”
The mare sighed, and gestured for me to follow her. “Then I guess It’s up to me to make sure you care for them properly. Wouldn’t want my first assignment to look like a half-plucked chicken, now would we?”
“Whatever you say; You’re the stylist.” Rose led me down a side hallway, the wall of windows to my right giving me a nice view of the city below. Of course, I was somewhat distracted by the view in front of me, despite my efforts to avoid staring at...
“We’re here.”
Curse my singleness.
“You weren’t checking me out, were you?”
“Ungh... N... Nope!” Smooth. She rolled her eyes, but gestured for me to enter the room in front of her. I hustled past her, trying to hide my red face. The room we stepped into had a chair, a mirror, and another wall of windows. I’m beginning to see a common theme throughout this building. Rose closed the door behind us, and trotted up beside me.
“I’ll need you to spread your wings.” I obliged, and the unicorn moved closer to inspect them. She reached out a hoof, but stopped just shy of touching my feathery appendage. She looked up at me. “May I? I promise I won’t make this weird.” I nodded, and she proceeded to rub a hoof over my limbs, poking and prodding, and rubbing the muscles at the base. She hummed in thought, and stepped back. “Well, beyond them looking a little rough, your wings seem to be healthy. Muscles are all well-developed and healthy in tone.” She glanced at me. “Do you fly often?”
“As often as I can. It’s one of the few things that relieves stress for me.”
“I see.” She proceeded to my other side, and after getting permission, she began to inspect that wing, as well. I’d hate to admit it, but it felt... nice. Not in a weird way, but more like getting a relaxing massage. I found my eyes beginning to droop as I relaxed. I hadn’t realized just how tense I’d been that morning.
“Hey. Don’t fall asleep on me.” I groaned as Rose pulled her hooves away from my wing. Reluctantly, I folded them back to my sides as she gave her verdict. “Basically, you just need to preen them. I know it sucks, and it takes forever, but you can’t neglect your preening just because it’s inconvenient. Now get to it.”
“Now?”
“Yep. I’ll wait.”
“Um... just one problem...”
The mare’s face turned red. “I.. If you want me to leave...”
“No! No, it’s not that. I...” I rubbed a hoof against the back of my head. “How does one preen their wings?” Rose stared at me for a few seconds, then her face split into a smile as she began to laugh.
“You’re kidding, right?”
“...”
“...right?” The smile faded from Rose’s face as it slowly dawned on her that I was actually being serious. She smacked a hoof against her face. “... HOW DO YOU NOT KNOW THAT???”
“I’m sorry...”
“EVERY PEGASUS FOAL IS TAUGHT HOW TO PREEN! WERE YOU LIVING IN A HOLE OR SOMETHING???”
“Um... I can explain...”
“THIS IS RIDICULOUS!”
Alright, enough is enough. “Can you PLEASE calm down?” Rose looked as if she’d been slapped, and she sucked in a deep breath, her face flushed in anger.
“I need a minute.” The door slammed behind her as the blue mare left, and I winced.
Well... This day can’t get any better. First I traumatize my boss, and now I tick off my stylist. Wonderful. Just great. Good going, Moto. I sighed, unsure of what to do with myself. I found myself thinking about Sweet Apple Acres, and the life I’d been living there. Was... this a mistake? I stomped the floor like a colt having a temper tantrum. I swore, and plopped my rump down on the floor. Admit it. This life isn’t for you. You’ve always been an awkward hick. I sniffed, attempting to keep my emotions in check. Screw it. I’m going home. I stood, and made my way over to the door. I placed my hoof on the knob, but hesitated. I glanced back at the room behind me, now eerily quiet. It suddenly occurred to me that I had no idea where home was. I removed my hoof from the doorknob, and sat back down.
I don’t have a home.
The realization hit me like a metric tonne of bricks. I don’t have a home. In short, there was nowhere for me to go. Aaaaand... there it was. My emotions felt like they were being compressed; squeezed out of existance. I couldn’t feel anything anymore, the world seeming to turn grey around me. Neither anger, happiness, sadness, or any other emotion affected me anymore. I was left an empty void, numb to the world around me, with only a dull ache in my chest where my heart used to be.
Depression.
Dang, it hit hard this time. The door to the room opened, and I looked up to see a much calmer Rose entering the dressing room. She froze when she saw my state, and the two of us regarded each other for a moment.
“Are... you okay?”
I shrugged. What’s the point?
“I didn’t mean to upset you. It’s just that...”
“...I’m fine.” Rose studied me, and seemed to come to a realization. She stepped up to me, and drew me into a hug.
“You’re not fine."
She... She knows.
“I lost my parents at a young age when I was forced to come to Equestria. Even now I don’t know where they are, or if they’re even alive. The fact is, Moto...” She pulled out of the hug, and stared at me. “You’re not alone. I feel it, too. Nobody’s perfect, and I’m sorry I snapped at you. I had no idea...”
I swallowed. “It’s okay... It's not the first time this has happened.”
“Are you okay now?”
“No, but I’m better than I was. It...” I breathed in, forcing myself to all four hooves. “...I’ll be okay in a while.”
“Do you want to continue with your wing care? We can postpone if you want.”
“No. No, I’m good. I need to do something to keep my mind busy, anyways.” Rose stood on all fours, and nodded.
“Okay. Preening.”
“Hey, Rose... what did you say your last name was again?”
“Williams. Why?”
“That doesn’t sound like an Equestrian name.”
“It isn’t. I was born outside of Equestria.”
“It sounds like a common name you’d hear in my home country.”
Rose tilted her head. “And what country would that be?”
“Canada.” I watched Rose’s reaction very closely. Her eyebrows shot up, and she sucked in a deep breath.
“I’ve heard that name before... but that’s... that’s impossible!”
“Rose, where were you born?”
“The USA.”
Twilight’s going to want to know about this.